On February 11, the World Health Organization announced COVID-19 (Coronavirus) as the official name for the disease that is causing the 2019 novel coronavirus outbreak. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, there are a reported 60 cases of COVID-19 from 12 states as of Tuesday, March 3 at noon. Twenty-two of these cases are travel-related; 11 are believed to be person-to-person spread; and for the remaining 27 the source of exposure is still under investigation. On Wednesday, March 4 Governor Newsom declared a State of Emergency as part of the state’s response to address the global outbreak. 

Not only is the issue evolving daily, but National Public Radio noted that the coronavirus outbreak has sparked what the World Health Organization is calling an “infodemic” — an overwhelming amount of information on social media and websites.

Whether you are a public health communicator working around the clock in response to COVID-19 or a PIO supporting your agency in delivering employee education, government communicators across North America are continuing to assess their response plans should a COVID-19 outbreak strike close to home.

To assist California communicators, CAPIO is developing a repository of COVID-19 resources that you may find helpful when developing communications on this topic.

VISIT COVID-19 RESOURCE PAGE 

Information surrounding the virus is evolving rapidly, and while CAPIO will work to keep these resources as relevant and current as possible, always double-check facts and figures before using any data in your communications.   

Share your response plan and resources

Does your agency have an active outreach response plan? Have you prepared key messages? Do you have existing tools, social media graphics or other resources that can help your colleagues deliver timely, accurate and consistent information?

Share your response plans and outreach resources by emailing CAPIO at info@capio.org.